Modern Languages
Head of Modern Languages: Miss S. Davidson, MA (Edinburgh)
French
Head of French: Mrs S.R. Worthington, BA (London)
Course Specification: AQA 5651/6651
Spanish
Head of Spanish: Mrs N.M. Mola, BA (Durham) MA (London)
Course Specification: AQA 5696/6696
Pattern of Assessment
| AS Unit 1 FREN1 & SPAN1 Listening, Reading, Writing 2 hours exam [35%] |
Themes are The Family and Relationships, Popular Culture, Healthy Lifestyle and Media. Candidates will answer a range of questions based on heard material and on a selection of written texts. They will also respond in writing to a question based on one of the AS topics. |
| AS Unit 2 FRE2T/V & SPA2T/V Speaking Test oral exam [15%] |
Candidates are given 20 minutes to prepare for a 15 minute exam involving a discussion based on a stimulus card about one of the AS topics as well as a conversation covering three further AS topics. |
| A2 Unit 3 FREN3 & SPAN3 Listening, Reading, Writing 2½ hours exam [35%] |
Topics are Contemporary Social Issues, Environment and the Multicultural Society plus two cultural topics. Candidates will answer questions based on heard material and on a selection of written texts. They will also respond in writing to a question on one of the cultural topic areas. |
| A2 Unit 4 FRE4T/V & SPA4T/V Speaking Test oral exam [15%] |
Candidates will present a point of view based on a target-language stimulus card from one of the topic areas, and take part in a conversation based on two cultural topics that they have studied. |
Pre-U German
Head of German: Miss S. Davidson, MA (Edinburgh)
Course Specification: CIE Pre-U
The aim of this syllabus is to enable candidates to develop the language skills needed for confident communication in German as well as to provide them with an opportunity to gain an insight into contemporary German-speaking societies. Intellectual advancement through close engagement with German texts, the articulation of readings and justification of opinions is carried out by candidates at this level in both German and English. There is a wide range of texts available. The encouragement of reading and sustained critical thought through the study of literature will promote a finer feel for the subtleties and possibilities of German and crucially provide the essential critical tools and essay writing skills required for further study in both Languages and other disciplines, as well as in the workplace. This option will take the form of an examination with two essays (one in German and one in English).
In addition to practising listening and reading, particular attention is paid to the promotion of accuracy and the wealth of structures in speaking and writing. The emphasis on grammar and syntax will result in an increased sophistication in the way candidates can express their own ideas and build them into a cogent argument.
| Speaking [25%] |
Discussion of an article and related themes (circa 8 minutes); prepared topic discussion (circa 8 minutes). |
| Reading & Listening 2¼ hours [25%] |
Understand and respond to texts written in German, drawn from a variety of sources such as magazines, newspapers, reports, books and other forms of extended writing and spoken material. |
| Writing & Usage 2¼ hours [25%] |
Discursive Essay (1½ hours) to be written in German (350 - 450 words). Choice of five titles rooted in the General Topic areas; Use of German (¾ hour), transformational grammar and Cloze test. |
| Topics and Texts 2½ hours [25%] |
Part I - Cultural Topics (1¼ hours). Candidates prepare two texts/films
within the same topic. In the examination, they will be required to answer
one general question with an essay in German (350–500 words) on
both texts/films combined. Part II – Literary Texts (1¼ hours). Candidates prepare one text for this part. In the examination, they will have to answer one question with an essay in English (450–600 words) on their chosen text. |